Max- Cross Over Ceremony

Weblos- here he comes!

Sydney- our gymnast

Veronica- puzzle time

Pictures! Pictures! We have new pictures!!!!

Make a picture slideshow

Awesome weekend

I'm a little late with this update, but as they say, better late than never! I wanted to write about the fun weekend I had two weekends ago. It started on Saturday when I was given the opportunity to go to a Father/Daughter dance at school with Sydney. She picked out my tie and was kind enough to pick race cars (my favorite!) and she wore her Easter dress so that she was extra fancy. Julie, always thinking ahead, had bought a bracelet for me to give her to remember the night. She's so good at stuff like that - don't know why that kind of stuff never occurs to me. I'm a guy - go figure. We drove Donatella which was a treat for Sydney and she commented that nobody else drove a sports car to the dance. :) We arrived at the school right on time and walked into the cafeteria/commons area that was being used for the dance. We walked in on a red carpet and had paparazzi taking pictures of us as we walked in and then stopped at "security" before we were let inside the velvet rope. They took a picture of us that they gave to Sydney as a magnet later in the week. We had a good time doing the loco-motion, Chicken Dance and having fun in general. The organizers did a great job and it made for a nice evening with Sydney. She was pretty tired and it was a pretty quiet drive home.
The next day Max and I went to the Cub Scout camp and had a good time doing archery and BB guns. Max likes archery the best but they had new targets that were made of really hard foam and most of the time everyone's arrows didn't stick. It is already a nervous affair - 1st through 4th graders with bows and arrows and guns, add in bouncing arrows and that just kicks it up a notch. We really stress the safety aspect but also allow the boys to have fun. Max was able to start on archery and then shoot BB guns for a bit and then back to archery before it was time to call it a day. I couldn't imagine a better way to spend the weekend - hopefully the kids enjoyed it, too.

Care Packages and answers to questions

Here are the two care packages we have sent to Lil' Bubba. We actually ordered them through Angela at http://www.ladybugsnlove.com/ She is very sweet and has been wonderful to work with. We tell her what we would like to send (such as a toy for a toddler boy) from a list of items and she does the shopping and shipping.

April 26, 2010- first care package


May 17, 2010- second care package

Then on May 20, 2010 we received a wonderful email from Angela containing the answers to the questions we had sent the orphanage in our first letter. Yippee! It is great to learn a little more about our son.

- Does he have a nickname that he likes to be called?
Yes. Hua Shan or Shan Shan.
- What is his personality like?
He is quiet.
- Does he sleep in a crib or toddler bed?
He used to sleep in a crib, now he is sleeping in toddler bed.
- Does he wake during the night?
Sometimes he wakes up.
- Is he potty trained? Does he wear diapers?
He is not fully potty trained. He is wearing diaper.
- How many teeth does he have?
14.
- How do you comfort him when he is upset?
Put him back to his own bed or give him some food.
- How does he comfort himself?
He likes to amuse himself. He likes to play alone or play with Wei Zhong Cun.
- What is his favorite food?
Formula and crackers.
- Does he have any known allergies?
No.
- Does he drink cow's milk?
No, he drinks formula.
- Has he ever eaten any nuts?
No.
- Has he ever eaten fish or other seafood?
No.
- Did he come with a finding note or anything else?
No.
- Has he been baptized? Does he have a certificate?
No.
- Has he ever had any illness? chickenpox?
He caught cold. No chickenpox.
- Is he attached to a particular person? caregiver? friend?
Yes, he has a special friend whose name is Wei Zhong Cun.
- Is he attached to a particular toy? stuffed animal? blanket? clothing?
No.
- Does he have a favorite color?
No.
- Does he like animals? Has he ever been around any animals?
He is a little afraid. He has never been around animals.
- Has he ever lived with a foster family?
No.

Now, we just need some updated pics. Even better, we need him to come home!

Necklace Charm Giveaway

Hey Everyone-

My blogger friend, Kelly, is giving away a hand cut silver charm on her website. They are beautiful! I am hoping to win the one that says "mama" in Chinese characters. You should go check out her site at http://raudenbushfamily.blogspot.com/2010/05/giveaway-jiayin-designs.html for your own chance to win one. Also, be sure to check out the web site for the charms at http://www.jiayindesigns.com/JiayinDesigns/Home.html On this site's home page you will see 3 adorable kiddos. Lydia is Kelly's daughter and Jake is my blogger friend Heather's son. I am not sure who the other cutie is. Aren't they so sweet?! Have a great day!



Julie :)